Persona: Tanya R.

Age: 44

Occupation: Office Accountant

Education: High School, BA in Management

“History involves all of us, which means we should all learn something from it.”

About:

Tanya is an accountant at a local company office who went to college for business management and accounting. She is highly reliable and capable at her job, and fairly tech-savvy for it, but keeps a consistent work-life balance, rarely devoting herself to overtime except in crunch periods. She is a mother of two: one in high school and another at a local college. In addition to her occupation, she greatly enjoys expanding her horizons in both learning and traveling, especially with her immediate family. Although she did not receive a Humanities-oriented education, she has always enjoyed learning about new things, and holds deep interest in local history. She especially enjoys interactivity and seeing how people can get involved in public, but despite her computer skills she prefers physical media and interaction to digital.

Day-in-the-Life:

Every weekday, Tanya wakes early around six to make it to her place of work, coffee in hand. After receiving her daily update, she immediately sets out to perform her daily work routine. A variety of friends in the office keeps the atmosphere amiable, but the work environment is overall fairly monotonous. She regularly heads home around five thirty to rejoin her family. In her evening free time, she enjoys word puzzles and reading about her eclectic interests before going to bed. On weekends, she enjoys traveling and seeing new places, valuing new sights and people.

Goals:

Tanya wants to involve herself and her family in publicly available humanities sites, such as museums and historical locations, to cultivate curiosity and a love for learning. When her children were younger, she made sure to bring them to all kinds of places like these along with national parks to teach them a broader awareness of the world, and she would love to continue doing so. Hence, for a digital project to catch her attention, it needs to be easily accessible while clearly communicating its informational value. The audience must include her own curiosities and interests in local history as well as her family in general.

Needs:

• Clear directions on the project website to the physical location of the exhibit/sources.
• An easy and accessible organization for the project website that emphasizes important information.

 

Persona: Richard M.

Age: 20

Occupation: Full-time College Student

Education: High School, Expecting a B. A. in History

“Learning about the past is the best way to prepare for the future.”

About:

Richard is a young college student entering his third year at a local university not too far from his suburban hometown. He has always been fond of reading and writing, and by the end of his time in High School these skills had coalesced into an interest in History. As one of many in his generation reaching adulthood, he is often concerned about his future career path and prospects, but he knows he wants to go into education because he enjoys sharing and discussing information with others. Also like his digitally native generation, he is fairly tech-savvy, which affects how he works, conducts research, and communicates. During the summer, he volunteers at local libraries and museums to gain valuable experience in humanities-oriented skills as well as interacting with people in the field.

Day-in-the-Life

During the semester, Richard is usually up by 6:30, either to hastily grab breakfast to make the commute for his 8:00 classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, or to otherwise spend the morning going over upcoming work. Upon arriving to class, his days largely follow the routine of fifty or one hundred twenty-minute segments until either noon, when he spends lunch with likeminded classmates, or until classes are over, whereupon he usually heads home for the day. On certain days, after classes he volunteers at the college’s writing center where he helps other students work through ideas or writing problems. After getting back, he spends her evenings completing homework or reading ahead but making sure to reserve an hour or two for his own hobbies before going to bed around 10:00. As his weekdays are usually focused on academics, he makes sure to complete as much of his work as possible before the weekend, so he has enough time to rest and recoup. He strives to maintain a healthy balance in his life, placing equal importance on school, work, and fun.

Goals:

As an aspiring educator in History, he is aware of the wealth of knowledge and experience he will need to be successful in the field. Thus, in addition to merely good grades, he wants to be able to participate in the current trends of digital humanities to be prepared for a career in it. A digital public history project should be informational not just to a general audience, but also to serve as an example to others in the field. In keeping with his digital awareness, such an online project should demonstrate what those digital tools can provide to its subject.

Needs:

• A suitable example of the kind of research and writing necessary for his field.
• Content that is engaging and informative for both academics and non-academics alike.
• A web presence that illustrates what digital media is capable of in the field in addition to traditional methods.